Breath and Body Yoga - Austin's Premiere Power Vinyasa Yoga StudioAustin's Premier Yoga Flow Studio2015-03-03T01:34:54Zhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/feed/atom/Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?post_type=event&p=19312015-03-02T18:47:04Z2015-03-01T10:03:36ZRead more »]]>There is nothing better in life than floating on the lake while taking a yoga class. Take the beauty of Lady Bird Lake, the power of Breath and Body Yoga and Austin Stand Up Paddle and we have the perfect combination. Consider becoming a Paddle Board Power Yoga Teacher in 2015. Breath and Body Yoga is offering a 3-day intensive training with Katarina Arnerica April 33- 26th, 2015.

how to host a SUP Yoga class if you don’t have your own fleet of boards

Requirements:

minimum 200-Hour Yoga Alliance Approved Teacher Training

have tried paddling before

First-Aid and CPR certified (or at least registered for a class before the training begins)

]]>0Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?post_type=event&p=21872015-02-27T13:54:18Z2015-02-27T12:45:40ZRead more »]]>It is my honor to teach with such powerful women. Join myself, Desirae, Mardy Chen, Christina Sell and Erin Lewis on March 3rd at Mercury Hall as we join the Austin Community in a fund raiser for Pure Action. The Mission is to bring the ancient benefits of yoga to mainstream medicine through Scientific Research, Global Education, and Community Outreach.

]]>0Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?p=21822015-02-05T14:57:19Z2015-02-05T14:45:26ZRead more »]]>Spike Gillespie can meditate almost anywhere — and she has, in the last two years.

Photos on her blog, www.meditationkicksass.com, show her sitting cross-legged, eyes squeezed shut and a slow smile on her face, in the studio at radio station KUTX, in the middle of a road in Oregon, in front of a wall of eyeglass frames and next to a Christmas tree.

Now, after a year of meditating every day, Gillespie is publishing a book about the experience. “Sit. Stay. Heal. How Meditation Changed My Mind, Grew My Heart and Saved My Ass” is part memoir and part how-to guide and features clever photos by Ann Woodall.

Gillespie, who grew up with an abusive father, says she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, cyclical depression and anxiety. Two years ago, she got so depressed she could barely get out of bed.

“I had to do something about it,” she says. She’d been meditating on and off for a dozen years, but without focus. She vowed she’d meditate every day for a year, and starting in late 2012, she did.

Five-and-a-half months in, she began blogging about the experience. She wrote first about how to meditate, then a reader asked if she took requests. That led her to meditating at strange and unusual places around the city. She meditates for 21 minutes a day.

“I still meditate every single day and haven’t missed a day since,” she says. “I hope to meditate until I die.”

She says it calms her down and eases her depression. It’s helped her come to terms with her own abuse, cope with a recent breakup and recognize that she has contributed to some of her own troubles.

The Army Marathon will take place in Bell County on March 1.

The self-published electronic version of the book is available at meditationkicksass.com (pay what you wish) or on Amazon for $9.99. A print version will be released in late February.

]]>0Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?post_type=event&p=21742015-02-26T18:34:42Z2015-02-04T00:08:10ZRead more »]]>JoiN Spike Gillespie at Breath and Body Yoga for book signing and meditation workshop. Sit. Stay. Heal

Friday March 6th from 6:30 – 8:30 pm

“Spike Gillespie can meditate almost anywhere — and she has, in the last two years.

Photos on her blog, www.meditationkicksass.com, show her sitting cross-legged, eyes squeezed shut and a slow smile on her face, in the studio at radio station KUTX, in the middle of a road in Oregon, in front of a wall of eyeglass frames and next to a Christmas tree.

Now, after a year of meditating every day, Gillespie is publishing a book about the experience. “Sit. Stay. Heal. How Meditation Changed My Mind, Grew My Heart and Saved My Ass” is part memoir and part how-to guide and features clever photos by Ann Woodall.”

Join Spike for a meditation workshop and book signing at Breath and Body Yoga, Friday March 6th from 6:30 – 8:30 pm. The workshop is free (just promise to buy a book).

]]>0Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?post_type=guest_teacher&p=21352015-01-03T04:24:00Z2015-01-03T04:24:00ZRead more »]]>I have been a licensed massage therapist since 2006 and have over 2000 hours of clinical training in pain management, deep tissue massage, and yoga arts. I specialize in a therapeutic style of bodywork that blends state-of-the-art osteopathic medicine with ancient Ayurvedic principles by combining myoskeletal alignment techniques with Thai yoga bodywork. Myoskeletal alignment therapy is a form of structural integration that incorporates muscle-balancing techniques with joint-mobilization maneuvers to interrupt and relieve patterns of strain, while Thai yoga bodywork uses flowing, rhythmic compressions and active, assisted stretching to produce symbiotic communication between the body’s vital systems. In any given bodywork session, I pull from a variety of pain management modalities—including myofascial release, neuromuscular therapy, and active release techniques—in order to tailor the session to the specific needs of each client.
]]>0Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?p=20902014-12-16T21:30:02Z2014-12-02T19:51:40ZRead more »]]>Download the Breath and Body Yoga App today and have instant access to classes, workshops and training. Running late for class? Sign in online and bypass the front desk. You’ll be able to schedule your classes, purchase class pass all from your iPhone or Android We are making it even easier for you to register for class and share your visits with friends on Facebook. Go to the iTunes App store or click here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/breath-and-body-yoga/id733062178?mt=8. It’s free and easy
]]>0Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?p=20882014-12-02T19:16:08Z2014-12-02T19:16:08ZRead more »]]>If you’re on yoga teacher training, chances are you’ve been spurned by your desire to share the delight you feel on your mat. Driven by some personal experience that caused you to question life at you know it, you’re eager to bend deeper, go further.

The truth is nothing can prepare you for the rollercoaster ride that is your yoga teacher training.

As much as you want to be the perfect yogi, snot will dribble down your Lululemons as you cry over your uber-spiritual, Whole Foods-employed boyfriend Sven, before you can do Savasana, because to get to bliss there is a whole pile of crap you have to handle.

Teacher training is a sacred first step towards your higher self. I am forever inspired and in awe of anyone who wants to teach. They are the ones hungry enough to be curious and brave enough to question, even though they have absolutely no idea where the answer will take them.

Here are some observations to send you on your way.

1. No matter how much you prepare, you’ll be unprepared.

No matter who you are, how much you practiced, or how good you think you are—you will not sail through your YTT. No one does. Daily yoga, meditation, and kriyas will open you up in ways you cannot anticipate.

Remember, “Oaks grow strong in contrary winds and diamonds are made under pressure.”

2. You’ll cry (like… everyday).

Alone with the shanti and the stillness, fears and tears will spill. Somewhere between Satsang on the Sutras and the anatomy of the scapula, all the stuff that usually distracts you will fall away. You’ll be left with things as they are, without the frosting (that’s icing for the English). It’ll suck.

You’ll be confronted with the parts of yourself you usually choose to avoid. We all have our shit. And sometimes that shit just isn’t pretty.

3. Your body will hurt. You will feel terrible a lot of the time.

The best practice you’ll have will be on day one. After that, it’s a downhill slide. If you’re on a four-week immersion, it’ll go a little something like this…

Week 1: Your body becomes stiff from the hours of asana and all the toxic crap being kicked out of your system.

Week 2: You feel like your practice is getting worse. You cry. Your body goes into healing-crisis mode as you clean out your closet.

Week 3: You are in intense pain! Sore muscles, sore joints, you’re overwhelmed by all the information you have to take in, and stressed out by all the information you can’t. You just want to sleep.

Week 4: You realise that you were stiff and sore because you were building strength. Your practice suddenly feels more solid. You understand that yoga isn’t all about pulling poses.

4. You’ll think about running away at least once.

You’ll feel physically and mentally fucked. You’ll have to dig deep on your own internal resources to stick it out. At this point, no one else will carry you through and continue to validate you. You’ll deal and find strength in that.

5. You’ll come face to face with the insecurities and the beliefs that limit you.

Your dirty little secrets and lifelong conditioning will have absolutely nowhere to hide. ‘I’m not good enough’ and ‘I can’t do this’ are particularly popular.

You ARE good enough. You do matter and you can do this. You’ll put yourself out there and what you’re capable of doing is enough for now. You’ll realise what surrendering to whatever shows up on your mat means.

6. You’ll fall in love with at least one person at training, probably your teacher.

You’ll make connections with people like you never did before. There is something deeply attractive about people moving, breathing, and sharing together. It is heart-opening, and in the beginning, because we’ve been so used to superficial relationships, we might interpret it as true love.

Then we’ll realise that love doesn’t have to be about sex and that there are many people we can share truly intimate moments with without ever having held hands.

7. Your friends back home will seem substandard.

At YTT you’ll laugh, cry, sweat, and swear together.

From here on, it’s all about soul friendships. Of the folks back home, you’ll release those who no longer serve you. You’ll travel miles to see your soul sisters and brothers and talk Titibasana and sequencing techniques.

8. Your life will change forever.

YTT will open your eyes to things you’ve never even heard of, let alone believed in. Before you know it, you’ll no longer be able to stomach meat and or wearing shoes. Yoga class will never be the same because unless it’s someone you really respect, you just can’t take it seriously.

The self-realisation will continue long after you arrive home. You will heal. The stuff you brought to TTC will be left behind (the good news). You’ll discover you’ve opened an entire can of worms and will be deal with shit you didn’t even know existed (the bad news).

There will be days when you wish you could turn back time, nostalgic about more innocent and ignorant days. Ultimately, you wouldn’t want to change a thing. You’re committed now. It’s too late.

9. It will break and humble you. This is just the beginning. Embrace it.

No matter how much you think you know, you really don’t know anything. Once you realise and accept you know nothing and you are nothing, the real transformation and learning starts. You become an empty cup.

10. You’ll come alive.

You’ll notice a subtle sparkle behind your eyes. There will be a spring in your step. Your heart will fill with gratitude. You will savour every breath. Little things that passed you by before will be abundant.

You’ll notice more synchronicity in your life. The lessons will continue to come until one day you realise how much you’ve changed. You’ll feel radiant and alive.

]]>0Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?p=20812014-11-13T17:03:40Z2014-11-13T17:03:40ZRead more »]]>I recently returned from Baptiste Level 2 training in Sedona and I’m still at a loss for words as to what exactly ‘happened’ during the week. The experience was full of highs and lows, tears and laughter, frustration and breakthroughs, dancing and magic carpet rides, but above all else, it was full of a very real and wholehearted connection.

Connection with myself, my practice and teaching, other yogis, the group, and far beyond to encompass everyone and everything within this amazing world. That connection allowed the training to surface what I’ve been avoiding/hiding/covering up, whatever word fits, but all the same. In looking back on my journal to write this post, I was not at all surprised to read the words “avoiding change” as the very first two words that I had written down at the start of the week. This is something I was consciously aware of but never decided to dig into or confront. As the week went on, I started to see through the layers of complacency and need for outside validation to discover that I get to decide every second how I ‘show up’ and ‘create myself’. It was incredibly empowering and scary at the same time, because the possibilities are endless and all about what I put into action. I came home and told my husband that I was quitting my job to create the life of my dreams and a life of service, or at least as far as this vision had developed in the past week. It has not played out in that short of a time frame, but the week inspired me to take action on creating change, no matter how small the initial steps may seem. I am creating life from a place of full participation and contribution and not needing to have everything planned out – being ok with not knowing. I continue to give up the insecurity when it comes back around and that is the training at work – not a ‘fix’ for anything, but simply an opportunity to get out of my own way and let my heart and true passion determine the path. I have a feeling that more will open up as the weeks roll by and I don’t know what it will look like, but I am sure excited to share it with this amazing community that has given me so much more than just poses on a mat.

]]>0Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?p=20612014-10-24T16:58:42Z2014-10-24T16:58:00ZRead more »]]>In 2002 I had my first primary breast cancer and during radiation went to a program at the YMCA call Body Flow which contained yoga. I can remember the relaxation and breathing after the yoga portion of this class. Then about 2005 I was wintering in Tx and my daughter and I started a basic yoga class. Then I would come home after four months of yoga and a little yoga in the Body Flow class I noticed a difference in how my body felt, sluggish and larthogic. Then in about 2007 my daughter and I experinced Breath and Body in Austin Tx and realized what yoga was and had a lot to learn. In the beginning I think you struggle with concentration and doing better. Then in 2009 (I believe) I noticed the Heat Yoga sign in Blaine on my home from the Y and decided if they were there when I returned from Texas in the Spring I would join. Yeah in 2010 they were there so I could now practice all year between Tx and Mn. In the Fall of 2013 I did the 3 month challenge and could go as much as I wanted, wow what a difference 3 times a week will make in the body for strength and concentration. Now in 2014 I had to face my second primary breast cancer and a uncommon ovarian cancer. In Dec 2013 I had bilateral masectomy and was amazed at my recovery, no yoga for 6 weeks, and remember my nurses telling to keep up with the yoga and how strong my body was.In Jan 2014 I had a hysterectomy and once again came thru with flying colors and the nurses comment keep up with the yoga you are so strong. My attitude was one of conviction to make it thru this and not let it get me down, and I contribut that to yoga and the concentration on a daily basis. I had three rounds of chemo and did not go to yoga for 10 days after a treatment, but other wise was there 2 times a week. Durng my recovery I did really commit and cannot believe how strong my body is and my mind to keep forcused on an issue or task. It has helped my horseback riding trememdously as I know I am sitting tall and guiding my horse with body which helps both of you become one unit. After my third round of chemo, March 2014, my oncologist, Dr. King, told me they now suggest yoga for cancer patients and he said look you are already there. I believe yoga gave the strength to get thru this past year and with a positive attitude to move forward. In my daily life I can now lift a bale of hay or sawdust. I have the energy to get my daily tasks done, ride and do some outside gardening. I look forward to my mat and time in yoga. When people complain about how they feel I always suggest you should give yoga a try.

To all of you who have me thru this process Namaste Day.

Teresa

]]>0Desirae Piercehttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.comhttp://www.breathandbodyyoga.com/?p=20512014-09-26T14:48:48Z2014-09-26T14:48:48ZRead more »]]>Breath and Body Yoga to so happy to present Mat to Table, From Breakfast to Savasana,a recipe for you.

Over the last several months the Breath and Body staff has been working together to create a cookbook, consisting of our favorite gluten free, soy-free, and vegetarian recipes. This cookbook is inspired by the lifestyle we live, and community we have created at Breath and Body. Now we want your help! We our reaching out to the community of Breath and Body to invite you to join us in co-creating this cookbook. If you have any favorite recipes that you are willing to share please drop them by the studio or email them to: desirae@breathandbodyyoga.com